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14 and 414 are alright.. now 54 from Prattsburg to Naples than 21 North to Canandaigua as long as no one is in front of you is a blast and the scenery is great. There are lots of hidden gems up here, enjoy! -Dennis

14 and 414 are alright.. now 54 from Prattsburg to Naples than 21 North to Canandaigua as long as no one is in front of you is a blast and the scenery is great. There are lots of hidden gems up here, enjoy! -Dennis

It's actually SR 53 from Prattsburg to Naples. SR 54 is a straight shot up the east side of Keuka Lake. SR 54A is a nice, curvy ride up the west side of Keuka Lake. It has reduced speed limits but is a pretty ride. Keuka Lake is one of the more scenic Finger Lakes.

There are wineries along and between the Finger Lakes.

The Curtiss Museum would be a good stop on SR 54 just south of Hammondsport.

I spent a bunch of years at Cornell in Ithaca collecting s string of degrees and having only a bike for wheels. I can tell you there are lots of good roads going N-S through the Finger Lakes and also that there isn't that much to choose from between them.

Just figure out what you want to see and go there. With Watkins Glen track, the wineries and some scenery many would vote for Hammondsport I suspect BUT there are now wineries scattered up and down both sides of most of the Finger Lakes- in fact the best quality ones aren't in Hammondsport and are small operations. Regrettably, the overall quality of upstate NY wines has not made the type of progess it should have in the past 40 years (VA does much better and even pretty inept NC is doing as well) and still relies excessively on native and French/American hybrid varieties which at best allow only second quality wine to be made. Climate is used as an excuse and yes it used to be cold enough to make growing vinferas a big challenge but it is doable in many places now with proper methods. Also the state's ag experimental station at Geneva has been less than helpful because for most of the time it has had no first class winemakers and produced only an insipid grape with high sugar levels (Cayuga) as its main improvment for NY's wine business despite having a tax supported mission.

Figured out what you're going to do once you get N of the NYS Thruway? You can make a fun multi dayrun heading to Kingston or simply blow it out in one day- whatever you prefer....

I spent a bunch of years at Cornell in Ithaca collecting s string of degrees and having only a bike for wheels. I can tell you there are lots of good roads going N-S through the Finger Lakes and also that there isn't that much to choose from between them.

Figured out what you're going to do once you get N of the NYS Thruway? You can make a fun multi dayrun heading to Kingston or simply blow it out in one day- whatever you prefer....

Winters in Ithaca with only a bike must have been a hoot, particularly getting up and down the hill to the university. I visited there when #1 daughter was looking at colleges.

My current thinking is to spend the night in Geneva since I have to get to Kingston in time to check in to my hotel, change clothes and be at a reception at 5. We probably won't stop much except for lunch and quick pit stops.

The routes I suggested are a bit West given your headed toward 1,000 Islands. Genvea has accommodations, but not the dining selection Canandaigua has, at least imho having spent a lot of time in both places. Geneva is a college town with a rough side to it. I respectfully disagree with the Bully Hill recommendation, if you do head up to Hammondsport, you do not want to miss Vinifera Wine Cellars founded by Dr. Konstantine Frank. Many good wineries in the area, but this is really where it all started, there is a lot of history there.

You'll also want to consider if you are going to ride 81 all the way up to Kingston or head toward Lake Ontario and hug the shoreline heading North. 81 is a decent slab, but crawling with Troopers. Kingston is a great place to spend some time.

I do like the comment about the North South roads being of interest where there is not much in between. Most of the hills and curves following the lake shore make for creating great riding roads. There are some roads in between the lakes worth riding, but much more difficult to find. I do like Rte 53 and 21 because it is almost all 55 mph, whereas mentioned by another poster a lot of the roads right along the lake shore are posted with pretty restrictive speed limits.